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Be innovative, CS tells Universities

Education Cabinet Secretary Dr. Fred Matiang’i has underscored the Government‘s commitment to upholding the quality of education in the country.

Speaking during the opening ceremony of the 15th Universities Exhibition and Discourse (UEED) organised by the Commission for University Education (CUE), Dr. Matiang’i challenged universities to invest in quality research and training.He said, said that the Government is ready to put resources into higher education in order to strengthen the quality, adding that the move will ensure that the country realizes Vision 2030.
He said, “We are ready to support the capacity in technical and university education. However, it is worth to note that no Government world over, has enough resources to fund the entire population of a university. Therefore be innovative in generating income.”

The Chairman of the Council of Public Universities, Prof. Francis Aduol, who is also the Vice-Chancellor of the Technical University of Kenya, thanked CUE for the just concluded Special Quality Audit Report saying it will help universities set higher standards of education and research.

He called upon the public and private universities to collaborate in areas of research and teaching saying the move will solve some of the challenges faced by the higher education sector. Principal Secretary, State Department for University Education, Ministry of Education, Prof. Collette Suda challenged universities not to concentrate on generating money but instead focus on training and producing graduates that are market compliant.

The CS who visited the TU-K stand said he was impressed by innovations by our students. He singled out an Exposing Concealed Communication (Cellphone Detector), used to detect mobile phones used by students during an examination. He said the device, if well packaged, can be used as a security measure to curb crime. He added that students’ innovations should be patented to avoid violation of copyright.

The CS was taken round the TU-K stand by TU-K Deputy Vice-Chancellor in charge of Academics Research and Students (ARS), Prof. Paul Shiundu. Present were DVC Administration, Planning and Infrastructure, Prof. Joseph Kiplang’at, Faculty of Engineering Science and Technology Executive Dean Prof. Alex Muumbo, Faculty of Social Sciences and Technology Executive Dean, Prof. Emily Akuno and Faculty of Applied Sciences and Technology Executive Dean, Prof. Francis Gatheri among other senior management.